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How to Write Body Paragraphs

How to Write Body Paragraphs. In essays of any kind, body paragraphs are essential. These are where you provide your supporting arguments to your thesis. These are also where you write your refutations or rebuttals against the challenges to your claim. In short, they serve as the very "meat" of your essay. Here are several tips on how to write the body paragraphs of your essay.

Stick to your topic sentence. The first sentence of the paragraph should be the idea that you want to develop within the same paragraph. Use it as a guide in writing your succeeding sentences. Avoid drifting away from your topic sentence as doing so may confuse your readers or, worse, lose the coherence of your essay. Take note of the key words in your topic sentence as these will help you develop the rest of the sentences in the paragraph.

Keep the paragraph within 5 to 7 sentences. Let's face it. Nobody wants to read a very long essay. Thus, keep your paragraphs at just the ideal length. The challenge, then, is to write what only needs to be written. Avoid cluttering your sentences with unnecessary words and phrases. Skip anything that is irrelevant or that doesn't make any clear sense. Always remember that your essay need not be very long just to make a valid point. Write to primarily to express, not to impress, unless you're told to do so.

Maintain transitions between paragraphs. To achieve this, you should end a paragraph using a sentence [a "transition" sentence] that smoothly connects to the first sentence of the next paragraph. In other words, end a paragraph with an idea that logically leads to the idea in the succeeding paragraph. This will make your paragraphs read tight and interconnected which, apparently, saves your essay from reading like a couple of distinct paragraphs simply lumped together.

Have a logical flow of sentences within paragraphs. Since your first sentence is your topic sentence, continue with the next sentence by developing the idea from the first. Do the same pattern for the rest of the sentences until you reach the transition sentence. For example, if your topic sentence is "Blue looks more beautiful than red," the next sentence should develop that idea by saying "Blue has admirable visual characteristics that red does not have". Following that sentence, you may proceed by writing that "Blue has the characteristic of looking relaxing to the eyes". And so on. Having a logical flow of sentences allows your reader to follow your arguments closely and understand better what it is that you are trying to say.

These are just some of the tips on how to write the body paragraphs of your essay. Always remember: to stick to your topic sentence, to keep the paragraph between 5 to 7 sentences, to maintain transitions between paragraphs, and to have a logical flow of sentences within paragraphs. Follow these tips on how to write the body paragraphs of your essay and you'll certainly send your message clearly and effectively.